Novak Djokovic won his ninth title of the year on Sunday after easily handling France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-2, 6-4 in the final of the Shanghai Masters.
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“Today the key was to get as many serves back into play to Jo because he has one of the biggest serves in the game,” said Djokovic after collecting a third Shanghai title in four years and extending his winning streak to 17 matches. “Generally I felt always in control of the match. I felt like I’ve done everything right. I’ve won many of my service games very comfortably. I didn’t allow him to get into the rhythm, get into the match.”

Djokovic in the semis rolled past Andy Murray, while Tsonga outlasted Rafael Nadal in three sets.

Tsonga had won his most recent meeting with Djokovic last year in Toronto, but it became apparent it would be a different encounter when the Frenchman was broken in his opening two service games. Djokovic is now 10-0 in finals in China. Tsonga fell to 12-10 in career ATP finals, but rose to No. 9 in the ATP’s Race To London standings.

“The first set went quick,” Tsonga said. “It’s not easy to stop him. He is really consistent on his return. Today I didn’t serve well enough, especially in the first set. After that, in the second, I served a little bit better, and it gave me the opportunity to have a chance on his serve. But finally I was not able to do it, and he broke me at 4-all.

“I’m very satisfied. To come back at your best level, it’s always a long process. I’m happy today to be back really close to the Top 10. Like I said just before, it gave me energy to continue to work hard and try to achieve other good things.”

Jankovic Dashes Kerber Hopes in Hong Kong Final

Jelena Jankovic made good on her semifinal win over former No. 1 Venus Williams, on Sunday coming from a set down to defeat No. 1 seed Angie Kerber 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-1 for the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open title, the 15th of her career.

“I had an amazing week in Hong Kong,” said Jankovic after winning a second title in one year for the first time in six years. “And Angie, thank you so much for letting me win today. You’ve beaten me so many times, so I’m happy I could finally do it. You’re an amazing competitor and fighter and I’m sure we’ll play again soon.”

Jankovic improved to 2-1 in finals this year, losing in the Indian Wells championships, while Kerber fell to 4-1. A win by Kerber would have clinched her berth in the year-end championships.

“Some days you have a little bit of pain everywhere in your body, but I was really just trying my best until the end of the match,” Kerber said. “Jelena just played too well tonight.”

Radwanska Books Year-End Championships Berth with Tianjin Title

No. 2 seed Agnieszka Radwanska put down Montenegro rookie and first-time finalist Danka Kovinic 6-1, 6-2 to win her 16th WTA title at the Tianjin Open and clinch a spot at the year-end WTA Finals, which will be her fifth straight appearance.

“I saw her here and she played really great tennis this week, so I didn’t really expect to have an easy match or anything,” Radwanska said. “But I was really solid from the beginning. I think I was just using the conditions a little bit better today, and maybe that’s why the score was like that.”

Radwanska improved to 2-1 in 2015 finals, while Kovinic became the first player from Montenegro to reach a WTA quarterfinals or better.

“I’ve watched a lot of her matches on TV but it’s completely different when you step on the court and play against her,” Kovinic said. “She hits very flat, and I was a little too far behind the baseline, which gave her the chance to be more aggressive. She moved me around the court a lot today and just played a really good match.”

No. 7 Pavlyuchenkova Beats Unseeded Friedsam for Linz Crown

No. 7 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova won her first title of the year on Sunday with a 6-4, 6-3 win over unseeded Anna-Lena Friedsam in the final of the Generali Ladies Linz in Austria, her eighth career title.

The Russian fought through injuries, arriving on court with a strapped left thigh, then during the match receiving treatment on her right thigh. “It’s a good problem to have, I will find a way to manage, and it’s better like this rather than to leave without trophies,” she said.

Pavlyuchenkov improved to 1-1 in finals this year after falling in the Washington championship match. Friedsam was appearing in her first career final and will re-enter the Top 100.

I just want to congratulate Tsonga for reaching final, Nadal having a good tournament and my fellow Novak fans for Novak winning another Master!
I’m purposely omitting Andy because at this point at his career, on the hard courts, he should be in the Finals and also,he is reversing to his negative vibe lately, which is not a good sign.What a talent , what a shame…obviously, in tennis things can change quickly so good luck to Andy ( but not much luck, because I want Nole to win more things! )
P.S. Bad weekend for French sport, but at least Tsonga show the heart, while Rugby boys…? No comment.

Congrats all title winners,nice to see JJ playing the type of tennis that made he world number 1 again,and Aga has to be the most talented player on the WTA,IMO it would be a shame if she didnt bag a GS at some point….

HI Courbon,congrats to your favorite,its like DE-JA-VU congratulating Novak and fans almost every week on winning a title lately,didnt see the match but it seems Mr Sexy Smile didnt have anything to trouble Mr Unbeatable,the best players can hope to do at the moment against Novak is to keep the match at least competitive,the outlook really looks bleak for the rest….

Right now, Djokovic holds title to 6 of the 9 Masters, the 500 point China Open, 3 of the Slams, the ATP Championships in London. Made the finals of 2 of the other 9 Masters, skipped the one in Madrid, Finals of Dubai, and of course finals of the French Open.
Every event he entered save a warmup at Doha – Novak Djokovic has wither won or been the Finalist for.
That is sick.
Only year that compares is Federer’s 2006. He already has more points than anyone, inc. Fed, piled up in a 365 day season – and can beat Fed’s year end record of 2006 if he wins Paris and the Barclays championships.
This is the year that puts Djokovic in the all-time greats of the sport. Likely to have 2-3 more years at the top. Likely to have more wins than losses in his clashes with Nadal, Federer, and Murray when their careers end. In a few weeks, he moves past McEnroe to the 5th spot in weeks as #1.

Soon, I believe, tennis will assess players with a more complicated measure of career success than the lazy, simplistic “Slam Count”. So if Fed has 17 Slams, 6 Championships, most weeks as #1 – he will be in the discussion. But if Nadal has 16 and Djokovic 15 in more competitive times, the discussions of the future on who of the 3 was the best will be more complicated than “Fed has 17, so there!!”.
We will see in 4-7 years when the career stats of each are clear.

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Gypsy, as for Aga, you must be a serious fan of hers saying the Slamless Pole is more talented than Serena. But to each and all sports fans their own idol.
I personally think Radwanska has a few crazy skills that are better than anyone else in the WTA, sure is fun to watch, flashy, but her lack of serve and offensive power dooms her to being a Dogopolov .

Margot – There evidently is good reason to think they did!!! I don’t know enough about rugby to know – but evidently the Ref. ought to have sent the last phase “upstairs” to see whose hand was actually on the ball – in slow replay it turns out that Scotland “should have won” …..I’m not saying it, the so-called experts say it.

Chris Ford1 im really not in the mood to be enticed into yet another quarrel with you, as im too tired today after the shift from hell at my work,so i will simply say that i think Aga is the most talented player on the WTA,OK shes not the most powerfull or the most successfull,but the most talented IMO but thats JMO,your entitled to yours,but shes not my favorite as i dont have a favorite on the WTA,just some i prefer to others, i just like the type of tennis she plays is all….

Courbon – Even if Andy has flaws that will forever keep him in the position of the much junior partner of the Big Four – Murray has had a wildly successful career so far, as pros go. He has mostly played well, just lacks Federer and Djokovics scary consistency and the mental toughness and focus of those two and Nadal.

No one scorns Jim Courier in the age of Sampras.

Andy gets the Davis Cup and 2015 will be a fine year for Murray. (That and 2015 marked Andy being a force on clay and stopped sucking so bad on it despite being an ideal clay player on paper) And if Rafa does not come back and battle Djokovic as an equal yet again, Delpo can’t get it back – Andy is the only one for the next 3 or so years that can regularly match Nole, talent for talent and thus regularly win against him. Be a rival. Him and the aging Federer, who has a shot at Nole on certain fast courts. Stan of course can show up and be a nemesis to Nole, but never has the consistency to vie for #1.

But you are right, Murray is an underachiever. And most of it is mental. Still beset by negativity, still melts at times vs. hanging in there. And most importantly, just doesn’t show he has a champion’s mindset.

ChrisFord1 – I could be stoned for this – BUT I wish Andy would stop his fixation with DC — the reality is it is supposed to be a Team Sport (apart from Jamie in the doubles) for the UK it is a parody of a team effort most of the time because even if James Ward handled one DC wonderfully (against Isner) – it is a one-man “band”.

Anyone who says Andy’s problem is mental is right but mostly in his choice of priorities. Get a life Andy!

Courbon – If I can return the compliment, I have found several posts of yours (and Mat4) enormously perceptive and thought-provoking.

J-Kath, this may be Britain’s one and only chance to win Davis Cup while they still have Andy, best Brit/Scot player ever, on the roster. I get what you are saying about Davis Cup being a team thing and where no one player can win it all on their own. (Unless they have luck like Serbia beating the USA on Nole and a doubles upset, Troicki giving the same country the win in an upset, or Radek Stepanek’s heroics against the Spanish Armada in 2012, beating Nick Almagro who was ranked 21 spots above him, in the decider. )
One way to win DC is to have the depth of the USA in the late 20th century, Spains in recent years. Or go with one dominant superstar with no one else nearly as good, and hope for some Serb-Czech magic from another lower ranked player or doubles team to happen at the critical time.

No stones will be thrown your way. Tough call for Muzz. Love to see him win the Year End Championships one day. Personally, I think DC is the right call.

We are witnessing something extraordinary. To me, Djokovic’s 2015 is already better than his 2011, and better than Federer’s 2006. Now I really want him to win London, and that will probably end some talks about the best season.

When I was watching Djokovic’s semi again Andy, it reminds me another dominant #1 against another Andy. A dominant #1 should dominate your generation, and that is exactly the Djokovic of now and the Federer of then. Federer was enjoying seasons without the ‘Federer’ from the previous generation, and Djokovic is enjoying seasons without the ‘Djokovic’ from the next generation. I remember someone said that a dominant #1 should always be driven out of the top from the younger ones, not the elder ones. I cannot see that younger one rising up next year, so Murray and Nadal will still be the best consistent threats to Djokovic for the next couple of years. After that, a wild west?

many people love novak. he is super exciting to watch; his game is so complete and so smooth and the best part for us fans is that he keeps evolving and improving. the fans swarmed him in asia. he is loved all over. i think it’s sad that some people don’t see this.

and yet, that’s perfectly normal and i understand. taste is subjective. some love this type of tennis; others like something else. to each their own.

Wait, predictable element was somehow missing when Roger was winning left and right? Or when Rafa was sweeping anything played on clay? How about the predictability of all those Roland Garroses that Rafa claimed? C’mon.

Nole is great for tennis. He is the one who will motivate younger players and his opponents now to develop tactics and work harder on their games. He will make them better players just like, by his own admission, he was made this extraordinary player by Roger and Rafa. Janko Tipsarevic confirmed that Novak motivated him to advance his game and reach #8. You’ll see a similar thing in track and field. For long distance races, there is usually one who leads the pack. His job is to set the pace and make the guys “chasing” him achieve a better result.

Sorry, but it’s not Novak’s fault that he is at the moment so above others. Besides, who knows how the 2016 will unfold? Maybe the Davis Cup win will work magic on Andy just like it did for Novak?

The danger with Andy is that he enjoys the DC camaderie so much that even if he wins against Belgium he’ll want to do it all over again. You’ll have seen what Margot said above – the fact that she did say Loud and Clear – don’t ever do it again, means (I think) that she too is fearful of this particular addiction.

The fact that Andy’s head’s on backwards and he’s got a baby due early 2016 could mean he will be lucky if he holds on to no. 2 spot throughout that year.

Nole will have a lot to defend in 2016 – if the law of averages decides to visit him – I believe he’ll still be a comfortable No.1 but the difference between him and the other top ten could shrink….a bit.

J-Kath,
I can, in a way, draw parallels between Nole and Andy. They both started playing better after their marriages. Of course, it doesn’t mean that the same will be true for Andy, but Nole was even better after his son was born. Maybe that’s a piece of puzzle for Andy that will finally complete the picture. Maybe the little one will put his head straight and make him calmer and feel more complete.

As for Novak’s defending all these points, I can only repeat what I wrote somewhere in 2011: he won’t be able to defend all this. It would be crazy. He will win something and lose something. But so will his opponents. As long as he is winning more than them, like in 2014 or 2012, he can still retain his #1. He will have a big cushion thanks to the points accumulated all season. I expect him to still be pretty consistent and reach the final stages of tournaments. This Nole fan would be more than satisfied if he only wins that FO finally and the Olympic gold. Everything else is a bonus :).

@12.54PM October 18th,furthur more,and i dont care for the term idol when it comes to tennis players,sports personalities or otherwise either, i cant stand the term its too trite for my liking,i have favorites thats all,my idols were my late parents….

As i posted months ago, Djokovic BADLY wants to be considered the best player of his generation / this decade, and by doing so, he must surpass Nadals achievments, and if we look at the stats, he is getting awfully close:
Titles: Nadal 67 / Djoko 57; Slams: Nadal 14 / Djoko 10 ; H to H: Nadal 23 / Djoko 22 ; M1000: Nadal 27 / Djoko 25; Year end N°1: Nadal 3 / Djoko 4; Weeks as N°1: Nadal 141 / Djoko 169; WTF: Nadal 0 / Djoko 4.
His current form demostrates that, considering that he already won 3 Slams and has secured the year end number 1, but he still went to Asia and destroyed his opposition claiming 2 more titles.

Billy Boy is right: reality is many Djokovic’s tennis a bore and robotic. Heck: even fellow professionals such as Mayer when asked to describe his style labelled it robotic and mechanical. Hardly the most effusive of comments. It is what it is: the guy lags behind immensely Federer and Nadal in terms of popularity and its not because of lack of success. Just look at his reality: crowd trouble in New York, Wimbledon, remember RG in the past,Madrid, WTF, issues in neutral Canada even. The guys not a draw with crowd like the other 2. Tournament directors are on record saying whenever Fedal withdraw: ticket sales plummet. He’ll: even BORIS BECKER, his coach, is on record saying that IF fedal retire anytime soon the game is in trouble since it has no stars, draws to pack in the crowd to replace them. And we all know why: the rest lack the appeal. Truth is: novak is is seen as a lendl 2.0 by many. Highly successful, dominant, complete player but: boy is he one bore to watch. He lacks the elegant game that draws in crowds like Federer. He lacks the energy, charisma that generates electricity in crowds that rafa has: why? Like his peers, respected media, fans via ticket sales have shown: he’s robotic and a bore to watch. Nothing against him: but it is what it is. We all know it, his coach knows it for sure since exit fedal, prize money decreases from sponsors and poor boris has his salary decreasing. Lol. I think Federer, nadal have captured the public like Borg, agassi did. They will still be popular post retirement. Have a myth, aura about them. Novak seems heading the Sampras, lendl route: highly successful, but a huge thank goodness he’s gone since he was a bore to watch, collective sigh by tennis public. Just think of it: when Federer, nadal were reigning the game was booming popularity wise, sales sky rocketing and even today they are used at forefront of brand tennis. Yet they are old, past it even. Know would the tournament directors wish a dimitrov was number one after them over a Djokovic? Deep down we all know the answer, and we all know why. Put simply: excitement on offer sells. Robotic monotony just does not.

Really no conflict on posts, Danica – on Andy he’ll play well again – it’s his DC love-affair that bothers me.

On Nole – even if 2016 is a little less stunning than 2015, he’ll still be No.1 at the end. I note your aspirations for him – no reason why he can’t attain them, especially if he keeps even close to the level he’s at now.

J-Kath i dont think he has a love affair with the DC,i just think its something he wants to achieve for his country,like winning a GS,Wimbledon and the Olympic gold medal,the other 3 elite players all did it,so why not Murray,IMO he wants for his country,but he wants to be in the company of the other all time greats that did it too….

“Again, completely two different trophy. There is not one better than the other, it’s just different competition. Davis Cup was always a dream for me. Playing for the team, playing for Switzerland, always been so important, always gave so much for that. So it was really a dream come true. Grand Slam, I never dream about it. So for me I watch so many final, I never expect to be there.”

Hmpf. He mustn’t have a good topspin shot. Too much of a reader no doubt.

J-Kath Rafa has a singles Olympic gold medal,anyway no harm or foul,i just think DC will be great for Andys resume,just like winning Wimbledon and an Olympic Gold medal was is what i meant,my post wasnt meant in a disrespectful way,as i too love Andy….